The Geddit Credit Caper
by El Kaye
Summary: The Kids from C.A.P.E.R. have to uncover the reason why many of Northeast Southweston's older women, as well as Doc, have suddenly become raging shopaholics. But finding out the truth may cost them their lives!
1. Act One

The secret word is: "Shop."

The Dingleman Mall . . . a massive marketing mecca right in the heart of Northeast Southweston. A sprawling combination of both enclosed and open air two-level architectural fluidity designed for ultimate efficiency in modern shopping convenience. And business there is booming.

"There's been an explosion at the Dingleman Mall?" Doomsday asked worriedly.

"No, Doomsday," I moaned.

"Oh. Sorry, P.T.," Doomsday offered.

"That's okay," I said, then I continued with my opening narration.

As I was saying, business there is booming. Maybe a little too much. Why have sales at mall stores suddenly shot up over five hundred percent? Why are women all over the city turning into raging shopaholics?

"I give up," Doomsday interrupted again. "Why?"

"And why do we care?" Bugs asked.

"I don't know," I admitted. "But maybe someone will come in and share a personal account with us that will inevitably draw us into the case."

"A really pretty someone!" Bugs speculated.

"A someone with long legs and sparkling eyes," I sighed.

"A someone who has food with them!" Doomsday added hopefully.

"And since Doc isn't here yet, the rest of us will have a shot this week!" Bugs pointed out.

The door opened and we held our breaths anxiously. A moment later we all released our breaths in sputters when we saw it was only Sgt. Vinton. He was looking especially tired and worried.

"Oh, you're not a girl!" Bugs complained.

"You don't even have any food," Doomsday pouted.

"And your eyes are bloodshot," I noted. "Is something wrong, Sergeant?"

"Oh, nothing to concern you boys," Sgt. Vinton sighed, but he continued anyway. "It's Mrs. Vinton. I don't know what's gotten into her. She's constantly shopping, buying stuff we don't need and can't possibly use. Last night she came home with her car packed full of sundries."

"Mmmm, ice cream sundries?" Doomsday asked.

"I don't even know where she's getting the money for all these things," Sgt. Vinton continued.

"It sounds like a serious problem," I agreed.

"Why don't you just tell her to stop?" Bugs asked.

"I have asked her to stop," Sgt. Vinton explains. "She promises she will, but then the next day she's out shopping again." He sighed, running a tired hand over his face. "Anyway, it's nothing for you boys to worry about." Sgt. Vinton pulled a file from one of the cabinets and exited the room.

"Very curious," I hummed.

"Yes," Doomsday agreed. "How could she get all those sundries home without them melting?"

"No, I mean, Sgt. Vinton's wife's behavior sounds exactly like what I described in the opening narration," I said.

"You mean she's booming?" Doomsday asked with confusion.

"Well, I think it's terrible," Bugs said. "Making poor Sgt. Vinton worry like that on his meager paycheck. She should be ashamed!"

Bugs slapped the top of the television set, which flickered on at the beginning of a Klinsinger report. We gathered around to watch. Kurt Klinsinger was at his desk, surrounded by shopping bags and various oddball items.

"Tonight we look at consumerism," he began. "What drives ordinary women to turn into raging shopaholics? In this age of rampant materialism, are we losing sight of the values and morals which should truly be important to us? Is the sparkling appeal of impulse shopping ruining our lives? It is the opinion of this reporter that we should take a moment to step outside of the shopping centers and take stock of this big, wonderful world around us before we completely lose sight of our goals and ourselves." The figure of a woman doddered in front of the screen and set several shopping bags down on the desk, blocking the camera's view of Klinsinger. "Mom! Please! I told you, I there's no more room here!"

I hit the top of the television set to turn it off. "Guys, something strange is definitely happening here. Klinsinger's mom has also become a shopaholic!"

"So something is causing the middle-aged and older women of Northeast Southweston to go on wild shopping sprees?" Bugs asked.

"It would appear so," I nodded.

"But how?" Doomsday asked.

"I don't know," I admitted. "But maybe when Doc gets here he'll have some ideas."

The door opened and Doc entered, carrying several shopping bags. "Sorry I'm late," he said, setting the bags down on the desk. "Do we have any cases going yet?"

"Well, we do have something strange . . . that . . . we're . . . um . . . " I began, but my voice trailed off as several men entered the room, carrying even more shopping bags.

"Just set them down anywhere, fellas," Doc instructed. The men set the bags down and filed back outside.

"What is all this?" Bugs asked.

"Hmm? Oh, just some stuff I bought," Doc explained.

"Yeah, but why are you bringing it in here?" Bugs asked as he started to inspect the various bags.

"I ran out of closet space at my house," Doc answered.

"You ran out of closet space?" I asked in disbelief. "Doc, you live in a mansion. You have at least seven huge walk-in closets at your house!"

"Yeah, well, those don't hold as much as you think they would," Doc stated.

"Okay, I can sort of understand the electronic equipment and books," Bugs said, peeking into yet another bag. "But why did you buy a whole bag full of purple knee socks? They don't even match your suit."

"They were on sale," Doc explained simply.

"Did you happen to buy any sundries?" Doomsday asked hopefully, joining Bugs in inspecting the bags. "I'm hungry!"

"Doc, are you feeling all right?" I asked as I sat on the edge of the desk.

"I feel fine," Doc assured me. "Why?"

"Oh nothing . . . it's just . . . well . . . can you explain why you bought . . . " I inspected the bag closest to me, quickly counting the contents. " . . . twenty-seven alligator-shaped inflatable pool toys?"

Doc looked conflicted and finally answered, "I . . . don't . . . know. It doesn't make much sense, does it?"

"Now this is curious," I said.

"If you think twenty-seven alligator-shaped inflatable pool toys is curious, you don't even want to know what's in_ this_ bag!" Bugs reported.

"No, I mean, Doc seems to have caught the shopaholic bug, too," I explained. "But how?"

"Yeah, so far we've only heard about older women who've been buying up stuff," Bugs agreed.

"Today's Tuesday. When did you start feeling the urge to buy things?" I asked Doc.

"I'm not sure," Doc confessed. "Since yesterday, I guess."

"Good, and what did you do yesterday?" I asked.

"Let's see . . . I got up, had breakfast, went to the library . . . um, then later I went to the mall," Doc explained.

"Ah, the mall!" I said, snapping my fingers. "That's very interesting! What did you do at the mall?"

Doc seemed to hesitate a little, then replied, "I had some things to pick up."

"You picked up some things all right!" Bugs scoffed.

"Did anything unusual happen while you were at the mall?" I asked.

Doc thought about this then sighed, "No, nothing that I can recall."

"What are you thinking, P.T.?" Bugs asked.

"I'm not sure yet, but I have a feeling the Dingleman Mall is at the center of all this," I hummed. "If only we had one more clear connection to go on . . . "

The door opened and a young girl entered. She was short in stature but seemed taller than she actually was. This is because she was wearing a hat that was adorned with a wide variety of fruits piled on top of her brunette head.

"It's Carmen Miranda!" I commented.

The girl looked startled. "My name _is_ Carmen, but not Miranda," she explained. "I work at the Dingleman Mall."

"At the costume store?" Doomsday asked. "Your hat looks good enough to eat!"

"No, I work at a food stand," Carmen explained. "Fruit on a Stick. We sell a wide variety of fruit on sticks . . . strawberries, apples, oranges, grapes, watermelon, figs and ba . . . "

"That's very interesting!" I shouted, interrupting her before she could say the word you can never say in front of Bugs because it upsets him very much. I motioned to Doc, who was standing behind Carmen. He quickly reached up and pulled the banana from her hat, hiding it behind his back.

"I hope you can help me," Carmen said. "I'm about to lose my mind!"

"Lost and found is just left of the admitting desk," Doomsday offered helpfully.

"Something really strange is happening at the mall," she explained. "Women are going crazy buying everything! And then they're hungry, so they mob my stand!"

"I would think that would be a good thing," Doc noted.

"The increase in business would be great but I can't keep up with the demand!" Carmen complained. "Especially not when they're buying ten or twenty fruit sticks at a time! I'm exhausted! I can't keep up with the pace!"

I stood up from the desk and announced, "This definitely sounds like a job for C.A.P.E.R.!"

"Who?" Carmen asked.

We stood at attention and recited, "The Civilian Authority for the Protection of Everybody, Regardless."

"Tadaa!" sang Doc.

"Tadaa!" sang Doomsday.

"Tadaa!" sang Bugs.

"Tadaa!" I finished, adding a bit of a Latin Cha Cha Cha flair at the end in honor of Carmen's hat.

"Oh . . . kay," Carmen said, looking confused.

"We'll take the Big Bologna and check out the mall," I said.

"A Big Bologna?" Carmen asked, looking even more confused.

"It's parked out front," Doc explained.

"That yellow thing with the hot dog on top?" Carmen asked, then she shook her head. "And you think my hat is weird?"

"I like your hat!" Bugs said, stepping over to her.

"You do?" Carmen smiled. "And what's your name?"

"I'm Bugs," Bugs smiled.

"Bugs, do you like fruit?" Carmen asked.

"Are you kidding? I go crazy over fruit!" Bugs assured her as they walked out together.

Doc and I exchanged a worried glance as we followed.

"I like fruit, too!" Doomsday chimed in as he exited behind us, closing the door.

********************************************

I parked the Big Bologna at the far end of the Dingleman Mall parking lot. Even for a weekday, parking was hard to come by and this was the closest we could get.

We piled out of the vehicle and made the long walk to the mall. "I'm going to have to get back to my stand," Carmen told us, "The mall looks busier today than ever!" She turned to Bugs and asked, "Will you be sure to stop by later? I'll make you a special Fruit on a Stick."

"Sure, we'll be by," Bugs promised.

"If we have time," I added quickly. "It looks like this investigation could take us a while."

"Okay, well, good luck!" Carmen said, and she hurried off in another direction.

We entered the complex and were amazed at the number of women running to and fro, each burdened down with countless shopping bags.

"This is even crazier than the Christmas crunch!" Bugs noted. "I'd hate to see what would happen if anyone decided to hold a white sale."

"They'd be in the black for sure," I agreed.

"Where do we start?" Doomsday asked.

I looked around and noticed that Doc was standing in front of a department store, staring longingly at the window. We walked over to him.

"I know I don't need them," Doc said, his voice pained, "but all of a sudden I feel like I have to buy a hundred pairs of galoshes."

"Keep fighting that impulse," I urged him, then said to the others, "We'd better get to the bottom of this, and quick!"

An older woman walked out of the store, her arms full of galoshes. She stopped in front of us and smiled at Doc. "Doc!" she exclaimed. "So good to see you! They're having a wonderful sale on galoshes today. Better hurry!"

The woman walked away. A moment later, Doc tried to dash into the store, but we held him back.

"Come on, Doc!" I said, holding onto his arm. "You don't need galoshes!"

"I really think I do!" Doc said, fighting us.

We finally managed to pull him away from the store and stopped in front of the large fountain in the center courtyard where various animal statues sitting just inside the outer rim spat water toward the center statuary. Doc sat down on the edge of the fountain and sighed.

"What's happening to me?" Doc asked with frustration.

"That's what we're going to find out," I promised. "Doc, are you sure you've told us everything you did yesterday?"

"Of course I did!" Doc insisted, getting to his feet and steeling himself. "I have nothing to hide! Come on . . . I can fight this impulse shopping thing. Let's go!"

"There seems to be a lot of activity going on over there." I pointed to a lower corridor of the mall which seemed particularly busy. "Let's go see what's up."

"No, I don't think we should go in that direction," Doc scoffed. "Let's go this way." He started to walk in another direction.

I thought this was rather odd behavior. It wasn't often that Doc questioned my judgement. "No, I really think we should go this way," I insisted. "Come on, guys." I started walking and Bugs and Doomsday fell in behind me. Doc hesitated a moment and then sighed, following us.

As we made our way through the crowds of older women, several of them stopped and addressed Doc. "Oh, hello!" one woman smiled to him. "I didn't expect to see you today. Are you going to . . . ?"

"Yes, yes, nice to see you, too," Doc smiled, dismissing her as he caught up with us.

"Doc, how do all of these women know you?" I asked.

Doc shook his head, trying to look confused (which isn't easy for Doc because he's practically never confused). "They must be friends of my mother," he explained.

We had stopped in the center of an aisle and I noticed there seemed to be an unusual amount of activity in a storefront that was located between the Vinyl Word record store and the Dingleman Beauty Salon. A sign above the store read, "Now Open - Geddit Credit." I couldn't help but notice the long line of ladies waiting inside to get to the counter.

"Oh, there you are!" Carmen said as she ran up to us.

"Carmen! I thought we were going to come by your stand later," Bugs said.

"I had to close for the day," Carmen explained. "Ran out of fruit."

"No more fruit?" Doomsday sighed. "That's sad."

"I know," Carmen sighed. "No more strawberries, apples, oranges, grapes, watermelon, figs or ba . . . "

"Uh, do you know anything about this store here?" I asked loudly, interrupting her.

"Geddit Credit?" Carmen asked. "They opened a couple of weeks ago. It's run by Mr. Geddit. He set it up where all the stores can accept his credit cards for a small fee and that way people can apply and then use their Geddit Credit anywhere in the mall."

"Are you in on this as well?" I asked.

"Oh yes," Carmen confirmed. "He's been very good about compensating the businesses, and he only charges a small fee per transaction. One percent or so."

"Do a lot of women use these cards now?" I asked.

"Oh, a majority of them do," Carmen said. "Why?"

"What is it, P.T.?" Bugs asked.

"It just seems suspicious somehow," I said, eyeing the store. "Doc, have you ever been in this store?"

"I've never even noticed it before, to be honest," Doc assured me.

"So you don't have one of these Geddit Credit cards?" Bugs asked.

"Well, Doc wouldn't really need one, would he?" I pointed out. "He's got plenty of money."

"Although it isn't a bad idea," Doc said thoughtfully. "I mean, my parents did say something this morning about cutting me off . . . "

Doc walked into the credit card store and we followed. We observed as one middle-aged woman walked away from the counter, holding her new Geddit Credit card happily.

"Can I assist you, young men?" a man's voice asked.

We turned to see a man in his thirties with slicked-back hair and a loud plaid jacket. He grinned from ear to ear. I honestly thought we were about to be sold a used car.

"Interested in establishing a line of credit?" the man asked.

"Oh, Mr. Geddit," Carmen stepped forward, "These are my friends, the Kids from C.A.P.E.R. They're investigating the mysterious happenings around here."

"What mysterious happenings are those?" Mr. Geddit asked.

"Surely you've noticed the sudden and unnatural increase in spending going on around here amongst middle-aged and older women," Bugs said, not so subtly indicating the long line of such women in his establishment.

"Why, my dear boy!" Mr. Geddit grinned even wider as he threw an arm around Bugs' shoulder, "This is capitalism at its finest! A well-oiled machine! Supply and demand! The ebb and flow of free trade! It's the American dream!"

"Well, when you put it that way," Bugs sighed uncertainly, pulling himself free of the man's grip.

"My boys, this is progress!" Mr. Geddit continued enthusiastically. "And you can be part of this exciting new era of consumerism! Just step over here and I'll get you signed up right now."

Doc took a step toward the counter but I held him back. "Thank you, maybe later," I said, herding the others to the door to leave. We had to physically pull Doc from the store with us.

"We'll be here any time to handle all of your credit needs!" Mr. Geddit smiled and waved at us. "Just ask for me, William Geddit!"

"He seems like a nice man," Doomsday noted when we walked out of the store. The walkways were more crowded than ever with even more women running between stores.

"It's too difficult to run a full investigation when the mall is busy like this," I noted. "I think what we should do is obtain jobs as security guards and come back tonight so we can look around more thoroughly. Carmen, would you be willing to help? You know the mall better than any of us."

"Sure," Carmen agreed. "It would be nice to wear a uniform that doesn't include fruit for a change!"

"Come on, we'll go arrange it with the mall management and Sgt. Vinton," I said, and we followed Carmen to the management office, not realizing that Mr. Geddit was watching us through the window of his store as we were leaving.


	2. Act Two

It was nearing midnight when the Big Bologna pulled back into the mall parking lot. We exited the vehicle, each of us wearing a mall security uniform (sans hats, except Bugs was wearing his usual white hat). Instead of the usual walkie talkies we wore our C.A.P.E.R. band radios.

We were surprised to find a few cars still parked in the lot. When we walked to the mall we were even more surprised to see several older women standing outside.

"Is the mall opening?" one asked hopefully.

"We're just the security night shift," I explained as I unlocked the door.

One woman did a double-take and then exclaimed, "Oh Doc! It's you! Could you maybe let us in? Please?"

"None of the stores are open," Doc pointed out. "Look, why don't you nice ladies go home and come back tomorrow?"

"Yeah, we don't want to have to arrest you for loitering!" Bugs warned them sternly.

The women looked startled and moved away nervously.

"I think that uniform is going to your head, Bugs," Doc noted.

"I like a man who can take charge," Carmen assured Bugs, who looked pleased.

We entered the mall and I locked the doors behind us. The stores were dark except for the occasional neon sign that had been left on and the fish tanks glowing in the pet store. The interior corridors were lit with only a soft, ambient light, giving them an eerie appearance.

"Okay," I said, "We need to spread out so that it looks like we're simply patrolling the mall. Bugs and Carmen, you take the upper level. Doomsday, you go that way. Doc and I will . . . Doc?"

We realized Doc was no longer standing with us. We looked around until we spotted him leaning longingly against a department store window.

"I'll take Doc with me," I finished. "If I can tear him away from window shopping."

"He can't buy any windows now," Doomsday pointed out. "The stores are all closed."

"Keep your eyes open for anything suspicious," I suggested.

"Right," Bugs and Doomsday nodded, and I went to coax Doc away from the window.

As soon as I'd walked away, Doomsday sighed, "Poor Doc. I wonder what happened to him."

Bugs leaned over to Doomsday and said, "Doc's hiding something from us."

"He is?" Doomsday asked with surprise.

"All these older women know who he is!" Bugs pointed out. "They must know him from somewhere! And you know what a lady killer he can be." Bugs looked around then whispered, "I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't wear a gold medallion under his suit!"

"Bugs, no!" Doomsday gasped. "Are you saying . . . ?"

Bugs nodded knowingly.

"Doc is actually _Isis?" _Doomsday exclaimed.

Bugs shook his head, deciding to drop the subject. He motioned in the direction I had pointed for Doomsday to go and Doomsday headed off, looking very confused.

"Oh Bugs . . . the mall is kind of scary at night," Carmen said worriedly, clinging to his arm.

"Don't worry," Bugs assured her. "I don't know what P.T. expects us to find. There doesn't seem to be a soul around except for us."

Bugs and Carmen walked up the motionless escalator to the upper level to begin their patrol.

I finally managed to get Doc away from the department store window and we headed straight for the Geddit Credit store. We stopped outside the locked storefront and I began fishing through the ring of master keys which the mall's management office had given to me.

Doc was peering through the window of the store into the darkness within. "I've never heard of anyone opening up a credit card store on their own before," he stated.

"There's something really suspicious about this place and Mr. Geddit," I agreed as I fumbled to find the right key in the dim light.

"But I looked him up on the computer and he doesn't have a criminal record," Doc reminded me. "In fact, all we could establish is that Mr. Willie Geddit majored in Behavioral Science at Northeast Southweston University."

"There's something about that guy I don't like," I insisted. "If he's got something to hide, we're going to find it." The key finally turned in the lock and I slowly pushed the door open. "Come on."

Doc and I entered the store. I pulled the flashlight from my belt and turned it on. In the beam of light we could see the counter and other furniture and tables set up around the store. It was a small place so it didn't take long for us to check the entire front section which was typically open to the public.

"Nothing looks unusual here," Doc pointed out, speaking in a hushed tone.

"Let's check the back," I suggested, also keeping my voice hushed. It just seems appropriate to speak that way when you're sneaking around someplace in the dark.

We walked through a curtained-off area which split the larger room into separate front and back spaces. There were countless file cabinets lining the left wall. Doc pulled out his flashlight and walked to one cabinet, opening a drawer to look inside.

"Wow," Doc said as he fingered through the files. "He certainly has a lot of women applying for these credit cards!"

I began to inspect the right wall, which somehow seemed strange. It didn't appear to be set as far back as the wall in the front office.

"P.T., I think you were right about this guy," Doc said as he looked over one of the customer contracts. "Mr. Geddit may be charging the stores a minuscule fee, but he's got these women agreeing to pay up to sixty percent interest on these cards!"

"Sixty percent interest?" I asked, still keeping my voice down. "That can't be legal!"

"It certainly isn't moral," Doc agreed. "And the other fees and penalties he charges are equally outrageous."

"That's the most sinister thing I've ever heard," I gasped. "A credit card company purposefully trying to get its users to go into debt to make more money? Who would have thought of it?"

"Mr. Geddit, obviously," Doc answered.

"There's something strange about this wall," I noted, pushing on it. I was surprised when it gave way slightly. I realized it could be moved aside and pushed it over a bit.

"Doc, you'd better take a look at this!" I said.

Doc looked impressed as he eyed the huge machine that had been hidden behind the fake wall. It resembled the kind of mixing board that would be used in a recording studio, with numbered level meters and sliding master controls. "What is this thing?" I asked.

"I've never seen anything like it," Doc admitted. "But if I had to make a guess . . . judging by the controls, switches, wiring and settings . . . it appears to be some kind of neurological wave modification machine."

"A neurological wave modification machine?" I asked. "You mean a brainwashing machine?"

"In layman's terms, yes," Doc confirmed.

"So he _is_ the one who's been brainwashing people into becoming shopaholics!" I said with a snap of my fingers. "But how does he do it? Surely he can't lure people back here and just hook them up to this contraption."

I walked around to the side of the machine, straining to see behind it. The flashlight revealed a series of wires coming out of the back and going into the wall.

"The wires go into the wall," I noted, looking around. It was then I noticed there was a door immediately to my left. "That's the beauty salon next door, isn't it?" I asked as I began fumbling with the master keys again.

"I believe so," Doc answered pensively.

I was trying to find a key that might open the door between the two shops, but when I went to try one I realized that the lock had been broken at some point. I pushed the door open and, as I suspected, found myself stepping into the beauty salon. Shining the flashlight on the opposite side of the wall I was surprised to see the wires from the Geddit Credit store coming out of the wall behind a row of chairs and branching off. I followed them as they ran along the floor then up and into the back of . . .

"The hair dryers!" I gasped, eyeing the bulbous dryers above the chairs. "That's how he's doing it! He's brainwashing unsuspecting women who visit the beauty salon to have their hair done! It explains everything!" I paused a moment, thinking. "No, wait . . . it doesn't explain . . . "

I stepped back into the Geddit Credit store and turned the flashlight toward Doc. He wore a forced blank expression, but I could see in his eyes that he was wishing he were anywhere else but there. _Now_ it made sense. "Doc!" I gasped. "You . . . ?"

"What?" Doc asked, still trying to keep up the pretense of being clueless.

"Doc, why didn't you just tell us?" I asked.

Doc sighed and rolled his eyes. "And give you guys a reason to rib me for who knows how long?"

"Well, I guess I should have realized," I said. "I mean, hair like yours doesn't just . . . _happen."_

"Okay, well, do me a favor. Don't tell Bugs or Doomsday," Doc asked. "Especially Bugs. He'd never let me hear the end of it."

"Sure, whatever," I promised. "Doc, this is great! Now we know what's happening to everyone and who's behind it!"

"Yes, you've figured it out," a voice behind us suddenly said. "Aren't you the clever ones?"

We turned, startled, as Mr. Geddit stepped out from behind the far corner of the fake wall which I hadn't completely uncovered.

"Obviously I didn't give your detective skills enough credit," he said, still smiling that creepy forced smile which looked even more exaggerated in the beams of our flashlights.

Doc and I stood our ground, keeping our flashlights trained on Mr. Geddit. "You may as well give it up," Doc warned. "We're going to expose your entire operation."

"Oh, I have no doubt about that," Mr. Geddit continued to smile.

There was something eerily unnerving in the way Mr. Geddit stood, smiling at us as if he didn't have a care in the world. Still holding my flashlight beam on him, I grabbed my C.A.P.E.R. band radio. "P.T. calling Bugs. P.T. calling Doomsday. Meet us at the Geddit Credit store right away."

A second later the radio crackled and we heard Bugs. "Bugs copying that P.T. We'll be right there." Another moment later the radio crackled again. "Doomsday here. On my way!" I hooked the radio back onto my belt.

During this exchange Mr. Geddit's smile widened even more (which I didn't think was physically possible). "Thank you for making my job a whole lot easier," he grinned.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"You obviously don't give me enough credit, either, if you think I'm going to let you brats turn me over to the police," Mr. Geddit sneered.

Slowly he raised his arm. Doc and I cringed for a second, then I looked confused.

"A hand-held hair dryer?" I asked in disbelief.

"That's not a hair dryer," Doc said seriously with an unusual note of worry in his voice. "That's a portable neurological somnolence device."

"A what?" I asked, not even attempting to repeat what he'd said.

"In layman's terms, a sleep gun," Doc explained.

Now _that_ I could repeat. "A sleep . . . ?" But I didn't get the chance to finish, because Mr. Geddit had pushed the button and Doc and I both collapsed to the floor, fast asleep.

By the time Doomsday arrived at the Geddit Credit store, Mr. Geddit was standing in the well-lit store waiting for him.

"Oh, thank goodness you're here!" Mr. Geddit sighed with relief, still smiling.

"What is it, Mr. Geddit?" Doomsday asked worriedly.

"Your friends have discovered something very important in my back room!" Mr. Geddit explained, motioning to the curtains.

Doomsday walked to the curtains and pulled them apart to reveal Doc and I laying on the floor.

"Guys, this is no time for a nap!" Doomsday scolded. "What did you discover?"

Mr. Geddit smirked as he lifted the sleep gun and zapped Doomsday from behind, who fell across us in a deep sleep.

It took Bugs and Carmen a while to reach the Geddit Credit Store, since they had been on the upper level at the other end of the mall. As they approached the storefront, they could see it was completely dark inside.

"Are they here?" Carmen asked.

"I don't know," Bugs said with trepidation. He unhooked his C.A.P.E.R. band radio from his belt and pressed the button. "Doc, P.T.? We're outside the Geddit Credit store. Where are you exactly?" Bugs and Carmen eyed one another worriedly when there was no response.

"Something's not right," Bugs realized. "Wait here, okay? I'm gonna check it out."

"Oh Bugs, be careful," Carmen urged him.

Bugs unsheathed his flashlight and slowly approached the dark store. He pushed the door open and carefully stepped inside, shining the flashlight beam around thoroughly.

Carmen waited anxiously, watching the light from Bugs' flashlight as it moved around inside the store. Suddenly she saw something moving out of the corner of her eye and turned with a gasp. As the figure stepped forward from behind the potted plants beside her, she let out a sigh. "Oh, Mr. Geddit! You startled me!"

"I'm sorry, my dear," Mr. Geddit smiled as he approached her. "Don't be alarmed. Here . . . let me help you to relax." He raised his arm, aiming at her with the sleep gun.

Bugs had made his way back to the partitioning curtain and pulled it aside. He swung the flashlight beam in a quick sweep of the area, ending with the discovery of Doomsday, Doc and myself lying in a heap on the floor.

"Guys!" Bugs gasped. He was about to lean down to check on us when the lights in the store suddenly came on.

Bugs wheeled from the curtain and saw Mr. Geddit standing at the front of the store, holding Carmen's limp body in his arms.

"What have you done to them?" Bugs demanded to know.

"They're just having a little nap," Mr. Geddit smiled. "Why don't you join them?"

Seeing Carmen helplessly cradled in the smirking man's arms infuriated Bugs. He rushed at Mr. Geddit, who anticipated the move. Even with Bugs' speed, he wasn't quick enough to beat the sleep gun's effect, and Mr. Geddit's smile remained fixed as Bugs collapsed, fast asleep, on the floor at his feet.

********************************************

When I awoke, I found myself in an excruciatingly uncomfortable position. I was lying flat on my back on a very hard surface but my head was propped up against an equally hard surface behind me. My arms were somehow suspended above my head. I didn't recognize where I was at first until I looked up and saw the yawning open mouth of the lion statuary above me. I tried to shift my position and realized that my feet were tied to the base of the lion statue with wires, as if I were being stretched out on a rack. Looking up, I saw that my hands were also tied together with wire on the opposite side of a length of chain which was wound once around the corresponding but smaller lion on the outer edge of the fountain's center podium.

"I trust you slept well!" a gleeful voice said. Mr. Geddit, who had been stooped down nearby, stood up to smile down at me.

"Mr. Geddit, what do you think you're doing?" I asked. As Mr. Geddit answered, I looked to my right to see Doc just around the bend from me, similarly bound. To my left I could see Carmen, also tied down. They both appeared to be asleep.

"I'm just picking up all this loose change," Mr. Geddit explained, pocketing the coins he had already collected from the bottom of the fountain, then stooping down to pick up some more. "No sense letting easy money go to waste since I had to drain the water off anyway."

"How greedy can you get?" I asked.

"Never greedy enough!" Mr. Geddit sneered at me with unrestrained glee. "It's the most basic component of human nature!"

"What are you going to do with us?" I asked. I could hear Doc stirring to my right.

"Well, once I've finished collecting all this money, I thought I would turn the fountain back on," Mr. Geddit smiled casually as he went about his coin gathering.

It took me only a second to realize that the water would come up over our heads if the fountain were filled. "You're going to drown us?" I gasped.

"That's the general idea," Mr. Geddit smiled.

"But why don't you just brainwash us or something? Why kill us?" I asked.

"Because the effects of my brainwashing machine only last a week or so," Mr. Geddit explained calmly as he reached beneath me to feel for coins. "I'm afraid I need a more permanent solution than that."

"You won't get away with it," Doc suddenly interjected, having heard the last part of Mr. Geddit's explanation.

"Oh, I think I will," Mr. Geddit smiled, stepping over me to collect the last of the coins between myself and Doc. "When the deed is done I'll simply drive your five bodies in that hot dog truck of yours over to the Roger P. Folkelman, Jr. Memorial Bridge and push it off. No one will even question it when the cause of your deaths is discovered as 'drowning.'"

"That's the most despicable plan I have ever heard!" Doc countered.

I looked over to Carmen, who was still apparently asleep. "At least let Carmen go," I urged. "She has nothing to do with this!"

"She knows too much," Mr. Geddit stated. "A shame, I know. But you're the ones who brought her into this."

Doc and I could barely see each other around the bend of the fountain, but we shared a worried look.

Mr. Geddit gathered up the last few coins and stood, looking especially pleased. "Now, I don't enjoy violence, so I think I will leave you to get started on the next part of my plan."

"Which is?" I asked, trying to keep Mr. Geddit engaged as long as possible.

"I'm going to wire the headphones in the listening booths of the record store to my machine," Mr. Geddit explained. "Which will be much easier now, thanks to you." He held up the ring of master keys and waved it in front of me. "Might as well start off some nice young people on their road to financial ruin." He laughed long and hard as he stepped out of the fountain and disappeared from our sight.

"Doc, can you see the others?" I asked.

Doc looked to his right and reported, "Doomsday's next to me. But he's still asleep."

"Then Bugs must be on the other side of Carmen," I deduced. I called out, "Bugs! Bugs, can you hear me?" But there was no answer.

"Bugs must still be asleep as well," Doc noted.

Suddenly we heard a low, groaning sound which grew louder, surrounding us. Water started flowing down on us from the top of the center fountain. A moment later, water also began spurting from the mouth of the lion, spraying onto my head. The others were also being sprayed by their respective animal statues.

"Doc, what are we going to do?" I sputtered.

"That creep stole our C.A.P.E.R. band radios," Doc noted, then suggested, "Try to get loose!" We both began struggling against our bonds.

I somehow managed to look up through the cascading water to see that the chain above me was wrapped around a thicker part of the small lion statuary. It also appeared that the same long chain was being used to secure all of us around the entire fountain, looped once around each statue above us. I started trying to push the chain higher, to work it onto a thinner portion of the statue. This meant I had to stretch my arms further, which was painful, but finally I managed to push the chain high enough that allowed some slack to slip loose.

"Doc! See if you can work free some slack on the chain!" I called.

Doc realized what I meant and started doing the same thing on his fish statue. He also managed to push the chain up further, giving himself a bit more slack. These smaller statues were thick around but only a couple of feet high. If we could somehow get enough slack to throw the chain over the top of one of them then one of us would at least have some freedom of movement.

Since Doc was the tallest and had the best chance of this, I called out, "Doc! See if you can pull in the slack I've got and somehow get it up around that statue!"

Doc began to pull on his portion of chain as I worked to manipulate mine so that he could more easily pull in my slack. It was a long and laborious process, made much more difficult by the water continually drenching us.

"What's going on?" Doomsday's voice suddenly sputtered from the other side of the fountain.

"Doomsday!" Doc called as he continued to pull on his portion of chain, "Can you see Bugs?"

After a moment Doomsday answered, "He's to my right, but he isn't moving."

"He's still asleep," I said worriedly. "Oh, what a time for Bugs to be unconscious!"

"As you can see, we're in real trouble here!" Doc told Doomsday.

"Oh no!" Doomsday cried. "Doc, quick! Call upon the power of Isis!"

Doc looked over at me and sputtered, "I think the sleep gun had an adverse effect on his brain!"

"Doomsday!" I called out. "Try to concentrate, okay?"

"Okay, P.T.," Doomsday's scared voice replied.

"Try to work your chain up around the narrower portion of your statue!" I instructed.

"Okay," Doomsday answered. After what seemed like a very long time he answered, "Okay, I got it!"

"Doc, try to pull in Doomsday's slack as well!" I called.

I watched as best I could as Doc pulled in even more slack. Now he could sit up slightly further, and first he tried to pull his hands down closer to his face to see if he could untie his hands with his teeth, but he couldn't quite reach. It certainly didn't look like the extra chain would be enough. Nevertheless, Doc tried valiantly to stretch his body around and swing the chain up towards the top of the fish statue above his head.

Finally, after numerous attempts, Doc began to tire. It had to be horribly painful for him to work his body in that way, and every time he looked up he was getting water in his nose and mouth. "I don't . . . " he gasped.

"Keep trying!" I urged.

After another attempt, Doc's body sagged and he coughed out water, breathing heavily. "I can't do it," he sighed. "It's not enough."

By this time the water was covering our bodies and was rapidly approaching our chins. "It's okay, Doc!" Doomsday called out. "You did your best!"

Suddenly I heard a groan to my left, followed by a sputter and a sharp cry of distress. I could see Carmen was waking up and was startled at the sight of the rising water.

"Oh, what's happening?" she cried, struggling to pull her chin up out of the water.

"Carmen, try to stay calm," I urged her. "It's gonna be okay."

I didn't have any basis for saying that. I just wanted it to be true. A wave of guilt ran through me. I felt completely responsible for the safety of the others and here I was powerless to help them. Thinking quickly, I called to Doc. "Doc! Can you work your slack over to me?"

"I'll try!" Doc said, working his chain along the statue so that I could pull in his slack.

"Oh, Bugs!" I could hear Carmen cry. She must have spotted him beside her.

"Carmen, try to wake up Bugs!" I cried.

"Bugs! Bugs, wake up!" Carmen called, her voice strained as she struggled to keep her mouth above the water line.

I finally managed to pull all of Doc's slack to my statue and sit up slightly. I gave Doc an apologetic look and he nodded to me with complete understanding.

"Bugs won't wake up!" Carmen cried, her voice quaking with emotion.

"Is he breathing?" I called. This horrible image came into my head of Bugs' drowning in his sleep.

"His head's leaned back, so the water's just under his chin!" Carmen answered.

"Carmen, listen to me carefully," I said urgently. "I'm going to feed you some slack on the chain. You pull it in towards you, okay?"

"Okay," Carmen said, and she began to pull on the chain, gathering up my slack.

At this point we were having to lift the lower half of our faces out of the water to breathe. With all of our slack gone, our hands were tight against the statuary and we had no room to maneuver.

"I've got it!" Carmen reported, pulling herself up further from the water. "What do I do now?"

I lifted my face from the water and called, "Keep your head above water as long as possible!"

Carmen's eyes opened wide with horror. "No, but I can't . . . !"

"You have to!" I sputtered, choking.

Carmen desperately tried to pull herself free, but it was no use. She turned to look at Bugs, who moaned slightly as his mouth disappeared beneath the water line.

"Oh Bugs," she sighed sadly. "I never even got to make you a Fruit on a Stick. I never got to make you any strawberries, apples, oranges, grapes, watermelon, figs or ba . . . " Her voice choked on a sob. "Or bananas."

"Blu . . . ba . . . blub . . . ba . . . na . . . na . . . . " Bugs must have just been waking up and suddenly his body became tense and he jerked violently at the sound of the word. He pulled his arms apart, ripping through the wires that bound them and flopped over into the water, writhing maniacally. Carmen watched in shock as Bugs shot up out of the water, yanking his feet free from the swan statue that was spraying him, screaming wildly, "BA . . . NA . . . NA! NA! NA!" He started attacking the swan statue, trying to push it over, then suddenly he grew calm and looked around.

"What's happening?" he asked.

"Not much," we all answered, although it came out sounding more like, "Blub blub blub."

"Bugs!" Carmen called. She was barely holding herself above the water and suddenly slipped, disappearing below the surface.

"Carmen!" Bugs cried in horror, and he ran over to lift her head up out of the water.

"Bugs . . . you have to save them!" Carmen pleaded.

Bugs looked around and suddenly realized what was happening. With the water well over our faces he knew he didn't have much time.

"Hang on!" Bugs told Carmen, and he got up and leapt out of the fountain. He turned back and stood, concentrating with all of his might. Striking a pose, he began a long, guttural cry and executed a perfect karate low kick, breaking out the edge of the fountain with his foot. The water poured out in a torrent and spread out across the main floor of the mall.

As the water receded, Doc, Doomsday and I all coughed and sputtered, gasping in great gulps of welcome air. Bugs ran to Carmen and ripped the chain apart above her head. He quickly broke each of us free so we could sit up or turn over to cough up whatever water we had swallowed.

"Is everyone all right?" Bugs asked worriedly as he worked to untie Carmen's hands and feet.

"Thanks to you," I gasped gratefully. "I really thought we were goners that time."

I started to work at loosening the wire around my wrists with my teeth as Doc did the same. Bugs ran to me and I said, "Go help Doomsday."

Bugs ran to Doomsday and started to untie his hands. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Doomsday confirmed breathlessly. "I don't know how much longer I could have held my breath, though."

"What are we going to do now?" Doc asked as he pulled the wire from his wrists and then started untying his feet.

"We need to contact Sgt. Vinton," I said, untying my own feet as well. "This Mr. Geddit is too dangerous to let escape!"


	3. Act Three

We all got to our feet and stepped out of the fountain, taking a moment to collect ourselves.

"Bugs, take Carmen and go out to the Big Bologna," I said. "Use the C.A.P.E.R. band radio to contact Sgt. Vinton. The rest of us will keep an eye on Mr. Geddit to make sure he doesn't get away."

"Okay, but be careful!" Bugs warned us, and he and Carmen hurried off to the main entrance.

"Come on, guys," I said, and we made our way back to the Geddit Credit store, proceeding with extreme caution.

Bugs and Carmen reached the entrance, only to find that the doors were locked. "That's right, P.T. locked the doors when we came in," he sighed.

"Maybe P.T. still has the keys," Carmen suggested.

"We don't have time for that," Bugs said, then he eyed the doors and shrugged. "Guess there's no other way."

Bugs steeled himself as he summoned his super-strength once more and pulled open the two huge doors. Almost instantly there was an unexpected flurry of motion as dozens of eager women pushed past Bugs and Carmen, stampeding into the mall.

"Whoa!" Bugs exclaimed, stepping back and pulling Carmen with him to keep her from being trampled in the rush. "Where did all of these ladies come from?"

"They must have been waiting for the mall to open!" Carmen exclaimed. "Like last night!"

As the last of the women dashed inside, another figure appeared, looking flustered.

"Kurt Klinsinger!" Bugs said with surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm looking for my mommy!" Klinsinger cried anxiously, then he acted calm to cover his worry. "She left late last night and didn't come back, so I assumed she might be here. I had no idea there would be such a crowd at four a.m.! What's going on, anyway? A midnight madness sale?" Klinsinger eyed Bugs and Carmen up and down, noting that they were soaking wet. "Or some kind of pool party?"

"No time to explain," Bugs said as he pulled Carmen through the doors. "We have to call Sgt. Vinton!"

"Oh come on!" Klinsinger called after them. "The crowd isn't that unruly!" Seeing Bugs and Carmen running to the Big Bologna, Klinsinger sighed worriedly to himself. "I'd better find mommy before she gets herself arrested!"

As we approached the record store we could see the lights were on inside, as well as in the Geddit Credit store. Cautiously we peered through the front window of Vinyl Word, which was adorned with prizes, including bicycles, skateboards and radios, for a large giveaway promotion the store was holding. We could barely see Mr. Geddit inside one of the listening booths at the back of the store. He was bent down beneath the table inside the booth, working with some wires.

It was then I noticed the master key ring hanging from the keyhole inside the door. I motioned to the keys and held a finger to my lips to remind Doc and Doomsday not to speak. While Mr. Geddit was busy working in the listening booth, I crept towards the door, hoping that I would be able to reach inside and retrieve the keys.

As I was sneaking past the window, a strange sound reached our ears. It didn't make sense at first, since we knew it was still late at night and no one else was there. But then it became unmistakable. It was the sound of numerous women spreading throughout the mall, chattering and trying to push their way into closed stores. They were approaching quickly and we knew it would only be a matter of time before Mr. Geddit heard them as well.

And as if that weren't enough, the main lights of the mall suddenly flickered on!

"There!" Klinsinger said happily as he stood by the main lighting panel, having just flipped the switch. "Now I should be able to find mommy more easily!"

I was only halfway to the door when the women started rushing past us, noisily yammering and trying to force nearby doors open. One of them stopped and grabbed Doc by the arm, pulling him towards another storefront as she exclaimed, "Oh Doc! Come on, there's so much to buy!"

I looked through the record store window and could see Mr. Geddit looking up from his work. Spotting me, his grin actually disappeared and he leapt to his feet, running towards the door.

It was a race now. I leapt at the front door, which thankfully he'd left unlocked, and opened it a crack to reach inside. Thankfully the key came loose without much difficulty and I pulled the ring through the door and pulled it shut, locking it just as Mr. Geddit reached me. He pounded on the glass door as I jumped back. I was startled by the viciousness on the man's usually confident, smiling face.

Doomsday ran to me. "He's locked in now," I told him. "All we have to do is wait for the police to get here."

"Is there another way out of there?" Doomsday asked.

"All the storefronts should be locked and there's no doorway between this shop and Geddit Credit," I noted. "I think we have him trapped."

Mr. Geddit glared at us through the window. Then that terrifying, evil smile crossed his lips and he stepped back. We watched as he moved to the window display and grabbed one of the bicycles, wheeling it back a ways. We couldn't understand what he had in mind . . . that is, until he hoisted the bicycle over his head and readied himself.

"Look out!" I shouted, quickly turning to push several older women who were passing by out of the way. Doomsday likewise steered one woman from harm and took cover as Mr. Geddit rushed at the window and threw the bicycle through the pane, shattering the glass with a loud crash.

Several women screamed as Mr. Geddit jumped through the huge gap he'd created in the window and took off running towards the center of the mall.

"He's getting away!" I shouted. "Doc! Doc?"

I turned to look for Doc, but he seemed to be infatuated with the contents of a window display several doors down.

Doomsday helped the woman he had pulled aside to step away from the broken glass then stopped beside me.

"We've got to stop him!" I said, turning to run after Mr. Geddit.

Instead of running after me, Doomsday ran over and reached inside the window of the record shop to retrieve the skateboard. "Out of the way, ladies!" he called as he carried it past the broken glass and then tossed it down, leaping onto it to ride down the corridor.

Mr. Geddit was forcefully pushing his way past women as he rushed through the mall. Not being so impolite, I was having to maneuver my way around these same women. Doomsday was deftly zipping around the women on the skateboard and soon caught up with me.

"P.T., can I have the keys?" Doomsday asked.

"Sure," I said, throwing them to him without question. He took off ahead of me and I stopped and turned back to get Doc.

Mr. Geddit reached the center of the mall and looked back to see Doomsday catching up quickly. He desperately looked for some way to escape, then realized that the entrance to his left was open. He changed direction just as Doomsday was about to catch up with him. Unfortunately it was at that moment that the skateboard hit the flooded section of the center court caused by the fountain, which was still spilling out onto the floor, and he skidded out of control, just missing his chance to grab Mr. Geddit by inches.

The entrance to the mall was in sight and Mr. Geddit pushed several women out of his way as he rushed for it. Just as he was about to make his escape into the parking lot, he was blinded by two bright lights which took up the whole of the space.

"There he is!" Carmen cried out as Bugs brought the Big Bologna to a halt, blocking the entrance.

Mr. Geddit held up his hands to block the glare from the headlights, then turned and ran back into the mall.

Doc and I reached the center court just as Mr. Geddit ran back in looking around desperately for way to escape. The scene was already chaotic enough with the women running everywhere in a frenzy and the water spilling out on the floor, but things became even more bizarre when a huge flock of parakeets suddenly appeared and started swarming around Mr. Geddit's head.

Mr. Geddit cursed and screamed as he tried to wave away the pesky birds. Moments later several dogs and cats, as well as a number of mice and rabbits, appeared, running around Mr. Geddit and leaping at him. I would have thought I was hallucinating if I hadn't happened to notice Doomsday coming out of the pet store.

But these poor little animals weren't enough to keep Mr. Geddit at bay. He was already making his way out of their circle. We needed more help!

Thinking quickly, I jumped up onto a bench and called out. "Ladies! Ladies, please! Can I have your attention!" The woman in the area stopped and looked at me. "I'm sorry to announce that your Geddit Credit cards have all been cancelled! You won't be able to buy anything else with them!"

The women all moaned and protested loudly, angrily turning on me.

"Don't blame me!" I called out. "It's Mr. Geddit who made the decision!" I pointed to Mr. Geddit and the woman immediately turned on him.

I was actually afraid for the women, hoping that Mr. Geddit wouldn't hurt them. But he really didn't get much of a chance. He was so quickly surrounded by a crush of women who pelted him with their purses and screeched at him as they closed in around him, I started to wonder if we wouldn't have to rescue him ourselves!

Fortunately at that moment Sgt. Vinton and numerous other police officers came rushing into the mall, accompanied by Bugs and Carmen. It wasn't easy, but the police finally managed to save Mr. Geddit from the angry mob of women. His loud jacket was ripped in several places, his hair was unruly and he certainly wasn't smiling when they slapped the cuffs on him and took him away.

********************************************

Eventually the police managed to turn off the fountain and began to clear the ladies from the mall. Doomsday called back all the animals and thanked them for their help before returning them to the pet store. He promised he would do everything he could to make sure they were all purchased by loving families.

Kurt Klinsinger had called station 6 OKK to have a camera team sent out and was standing by the broken fountain filming his report. " . . . and so the dastardly doings of Mr. Willie Geddit and his Geddit Credit scheme were brought to an end, thanks to this reporter who helped bring about the arrest of this notorious villain by turning on the lights . . . " He thought quickly and then added, " . . . to expose this insidious case." He saw his mother across the way trying to use a crowbar to break into one of the stores and called, "Mom!" as he ran to get her.

Sgt. Vinton had ordered blankets brought in for us and we held them tightly around us. I observed the others and realized that even with the blankets around us we were all shivering. Bugs and Carmen were sitting together on a bench. Doomsday was sitting on the edge of a planter. Doc was standing next to me but still eyed the shop windows longingly.

Sgt. Vinton approached me with a look of serious concern. "If I'd had any idea how dangerous this case was I would never have allowed you to work mall security tonight," he said.

"The fault was mine, Sergeant," I admitted with a sigh. "I underestimated the seriousness of the case." I eyed the others sadly. "If Bugs hadn't happened to wake up at just the right moment . . . "

Sgt. Vinton could sense my feelings of guilt and placed a hand on my shoulder. "This is a dangerous job," he assured me. "Some things are outside our control. We do the best we can, but you have to be on guard at all times. When you come up against a ruthless criminal like this, you can never be too careful."

I nodded with a shiver.

"You did a good job," Sgt. Vinton assured me with a smile, "And I'm glad you're all okay."

"Thank you, Sergeant," I said sincerely as the man turned to leave.

Bugs looked hopefully at Carmen and asked, "Are you still going to make me one of your famous Fruit on a Sticks?"

Carmen eyed Bugs sadly and took his hand, sighing, "No, Bugs. I'm sorry . . . I had no idea that you . . . " She saw the confusion in his eyes and shook her head. "It just wouldn't work out between you and I. It's really for the best that we never see each other again."

Carmen stood up to follow Sgt. Vinton, who offered her a ride home. As she passed us, we eyed her sympathetically. We knew she was only trying to protect Bugs.

"Thank you," she said sincerely to me, and I nodded as she and Sgt. Vinton walked away.

"What happened?" Bugs asked in a devastated voice. "I don't understand! I thought we were getting along so well!"

"I guess nearly drowning would put a damper on any first date," I pointed out.

"Guys, don't you think we could use a three-speed lawn mower for the office?" Doc asked us, still looking back at the shop windows.

"No," we all answered emphatically.

"At least the effects of the brainwashing should wear off in a week or so," I pointed out.

"That's the other thing I don't understand," Bugs said. "If these older women were being brainwashed under the hair dryers at the beauty salon, then how did Doc . . . ?"

A look of realization came over Bugs' face, much to Doc's dismay. Bugs pointed at Doc and started to laugh. "Oh ho ho!" Bugs chortled.

"Aw, come on!" Doc protested.

"What is it?" Doomsday asked, still confused.

"Doc goes to the beauty salon to get his hair done!" Bugs teased loudly, laughing again.

Doomsday's eyes opened wide as he stared at Doc in disbelief. "Then that means . . . Doc really _is_ Isis!"

THE END


End file.
